Innocenti's uses of browns and reds and his skill in lighting an illustrated scene create a suitably ominous feeling in this dignified, well-designed 11-1/4" x 8-3/4" edition of a story familiar to many children as a film distinctly different from the book. (Ages 7-12)

Like many little boys, Pinocchio likes to dabble in mischief, disobey his parents, and shirk his studies and chores. Like many ordinary boys, Pinocchio does what he pleases, with scant regard for the consequences. But the star of this tale isn't just any little boy. And he's certainly not ordinary. In fact, he's not a boy at all. With a head made of wood and his body carved from an enchanted tree limb, Pinocchio is a puppet. And a naughty one at that!

Author Carlo Collodi and illustrator Roberto Innocenti treat readers to a wildly imaginative ride in this delightful story of an egoistic wooden puppet whose bad behavior leads him from one misfortune to another. In the end, lured by the promise of becoming a "real" boy should he change his wicked ways, Pinocchio tries to make amends. But will his good deeds come too late?

Carlo Collodi is the pseudonym of Carlo Lorenzini (18261890), an accomplished Italian journalist whose translations of French fairy tales in the late 1870s earned such praise that he was encouraged to write his own. "Le Avventure di Pinocchio" ("The Adventures of Pinocchio"), his most famous and beloved work, debuted in 1881 and is today considered a children's classic.

Italian Roberto Innocenti taught himself the craft of illustration as a young man and has since become one of the world's most recognizable children's book illustrators. His work in such acclaimed picture books as "Rose Blanche," "Nutcracker," "A Christmas Carol," "The Last Resort," and "Erika's Story" has garnered wide critical acclaim and such honors as the Bratislava Golden Apple Award and a 2004 nomination for the Hans Christian Andersen Award.